These units were written during the Summer Curriculum Writing Institute* (SCWI) at Trinity University beginning in 2005 and are added to at the close of the Institute each year. They use the Understanding by Design framework developed by Grant Wiggins and Jay McTighe. Note that earlier units use the UbD original template, while many newer units utilize the 2.0 version. We hope units are useful to teachers developing curriculum globally. If you have any questions about this site, contact Dr. Laura Allen, SCWI Coordinator, at lallen@trinity.edu.
For more information, please see Connecting the Continuum: A University-based Induction Program to Improve Teacher Quality.*SCWI is an induction support program that invites graduates of Trinity University’s MAT program back to campus for one week each summer to write curriculum for their own classrooms. Participants are paid a stipend for attending and travel and receive 30 CPE hours.
These works are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.
Submissions from 2013
Mythology is a Reflection of Culture [7th grade], Tina Harper
Why is it there: Placing companies in the United States and Canada [9th grade], Luaren Heath
The Power of Persuasion, Lauren Hickey
Everyday Forces, Michelle Hockley
Ancient Civilizations: What do we know and how do we know it?, M. Melendy Jacobie
Understanding Geometry as an Axiomatic System, Danielle Kendrick
Southern Gothic, Morgan Kern
Colonial America & Our Founding Documents, John Laymon III
Inheriting your Wind: Lawrence and Lee’s Lessons in Avoiding Servitude to the “Wise”, Lauren Lee
Pourquoi Stories, Dan Mallette
Modeling the World, Jeremy Martin
Persuasive Essay, Katie Mason
Sleuthing the Buffalo Wars, Mark A. McCullough
How Do We Measure?, Kyla Mcglynn
Where everyone’s PLACE is VALUED: A Numeration Unit, Karen Morrison
En el vecindario, Leah A. Morton-Gittens
Romeo and Juliet is About You: Finding the Self in Drama, Elizabeth Muire
Huellas del pasado, Shannon Probe
Transformations in Europe 15th-18th Centuries, Hillary Rodriguez
Energy Transformations in the Real World, Stephanie Sanders and Dayna Fogle
Shaping Community - Teamwork and Critical Thinking, Alexander Serna-Wallender
Páginas de Caras: Willa Cather’s Characters in the Twenty-First Century, Amy Taffet
AP Language Summer Reading Unit for Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, Amy R. Thomson
The Process of Becoming an Expository Writer, Valerie Vied
Inside and Outside: Wonder and Let’s Relate to Genetics: DNA, Stephany Weaver
Take a Chance on Probabiliy - 7th grade, Melanie R. Webb
Submissions from 2012
Encuentro entre culturas [9th-12th grades], Jennifer Aranda and Juanita Castillo
“Give me the Game”: A Study of Card’s Ender’s Game [11th grade], J Kat Aylesworth
Clases y Cultura [9th-12th grades], Jonelle Bailey
Spanish I Resumen/ Overview [9th-12th grades], Jonelle Bailey
Take a Stand for Australia: Considering Australia’s Economic and Environmental Concerns Now and in the Future [9th grade], Adele Barnett
Cena Optima (The Best Dinner) [9th grade], Amy Barnett
Write Your Own Autobiography [6th grade], Jeanine Capitani
Geometric Optics [11th-12th grade], Amanda Chapman
Study of Identity Formation through The Light in the Forest by Conrad Richter [6th grade], Anna Clark
Habitats [3rd grade], Leslie Davenport
Prove Your Point [10th grade], Ashley Davis
La Guerra Civil [8th grade], Merida Elizondo
Introduction to Poetry [4th grade], Eloisa Flores
Energy Resources [5th grade], Lindsay Freres and Kristen Miceli
What’s the Weather? [1st grade], Lisa Hoveland
Introducing the DBQ Essay Using Personal Evidence [10th grade], M Melendy Jacobie
“The Girl Who Was on Fire”: A Study of Archetypes and Mythology in The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins [9th grade], Melissa Jimenez
Converting and Ordering Rational Numbers [6th grade], Danielle Kunetz and Melanie Webb
The Classical World: Greece and Rome [7th-8th grades], Kari Matthies
Heating and Cooling [kindergarten], Kyla McGlynn
Reread, Rethink, Recycle [3rd grade], Karen Morrison
Familiares y amigos [10th grade], Leah A. Morton-Gittens
The Times They Are A-Changin’: Civil War Through Reconstruction [7th grade], Becky Orsini and Nick Thomason
This graph is speaking to me; how do I listen? [8th grade], Matthew Patty
Myself and Others [pre-kindergarten], Anne Peppers
Personal Safety [pre-kindergarten], Anne Peppers
Texas Regions [4th grade], Hannah Rinn
Discovering Uniformly Accelerated Motion [11th-12th grades], Stephanie Sanders
Plate Tectonic: Plates and Their Consequences [8th grade], Alexander Serna-Wallender
Circuits [4th grade], Carrie Sites and Melissa Cole
Explorers [4th grade], Carrie Sites and Melissa Cole
AP Literature Summer Reading Unit for My Antonia and Adventures of Huckleberry Finn [12th grade], Amy R. Thomson
Dystopian Literature [10th grade], Valerie Vied
Cell Theory and Cell Function [7th grade], Daisy Wang and Amber Schumacher
Culture and Identity in your Community and the World [6th grade], Stephany Weaver and Anne Daly
Submissions from 2011
¿ Cómo se hace la paella?, Jennifer Aranda and Juanita Castillo
El arte de contar (The Art of Storytelling), Carol Arnold
The Individual and Group Dynamics in Alexie’s The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, Kat Aylesworth
COMIDA- Let’s Eat!, Jonelle Bailey
Family Fun and Facts!, Jonelle Bailey
Vacation Plans, Jonelle Bailey
Setting the Scene: Adapting Romeo and Juliet to the 21st Century, Erika Barker and Veronica Pena-Montalvo
The (Dis)Advantages of City Living and the Passive Voice, Amy Barnett
Framing Poetry, Sherry Brown
Measurement: Surviving our Multi-Dimensional World, Courtney Bryand
Day of the Dead, Jeanine Capitani
Animal Interdependence, Christy Custer
La cultura de comida – The culture of food, Merida Elizondo
Grammar is a Source of Power: Bridging the Gap to Empower the Writer, Tina Harper and Monica Gonzalez
Life Is Like a Rollercoaster (Physics), Michelle Hockley
Cause and Effect: Using Expository Writing to Problem-Solve, Mollie Knapp
The Motif of Sight: Knowledge versus ignorance in Sophocles’ Oedipus Rex, Lauren Lee
Border Disorder – Cultures in Conflict Throughout the World, Bethany Lorge
De Vacaciones (Going on Vacation), Jaclyn K. Metcalf
Media Literacy and Rhetorical Analysis with Advertisements, Ellen Mitchell
Bamboo People—an interdisciplinary unit for high school, Mitzi Moore
Global Environmental Problems, the ISA way, Mitzi Moore and Kathleen Pedder
It’s a Small World After All: An Economic Experiment in Trade, Karen Morrison
Animal Habitats, Beth Morrow and Anne Peppers
Changes in the Earth and Sky: Shadows, Day, and Night [pre-kindergarten], Beth Morrow and Anne Peppers
Energy: Electricity, Heat, and Light, Beth Morrow and Anne Peppers
Nutrition and Exercise, Beth Morrow and Anne Peppers
Our Families, Beth Morrow and Anne Peppers
Shapes, Beth Morrow and Anne Peppers
What Constitutes a Constitution?, Becky Orsini and Nick Thomason
Matter Matters, Natalie Pierce, Jamie Boelens, and Catherine Brackett
Extreme Makeover: Country Edition, Susanna Pierce
Finding the Right Fit, Norton Reihner
Genetics, Adaptations, Biomes, Theodore Risinger and Stephanie Greathouse
How Do You Get What You Want??, Garrett Scott and Anne Blake
Genetics: Heredity and Adaptations, Alexander Serna-Wallender
Debating the Truth, Lisa Shay
Number, Numbers Everywhere! But Whatever Do I Think? 1st Grade Numerical Fluency, Audrey Tan
Elemental Fiction, Amy R. Thomson